BELMONT, NC - In a game that featured five ties and eight lead changes, the Belmont Abbey men's basketball team's late surge fell short as the Pfeiffer Falcons moved to 15-7 overall and 11-5 in Conference Carolinas with a 104-89 win this evening at the Wheeler Center. The Abbey falls to 11-12 overall and 7-10 in Conference Carolinas.

Abbey guard Richard Barbee led all scorers with 28 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two assists. Senior guard Patrick Kuhlman added 13 points and five assists, and Jay Council contributed 12 points, three assists and two steals. Chad Patus finished with six points but had a game-high 12 rebounds and two steals. The Abbey shot 49.2 percent from the field.

Pfeiffer shot 49.3 percent as Jeff Pettiway led the way with 26 points, one of five Falcons to reach double figures, while Davon Gilliard and James Crowder both added 16. Chris Woods poured in 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds, while James Morse contributed ten points.

The Abbey led for most of the first half, building its lead to as high as seven points at 25-18 with 10:45 left, but a 16-7 Pfeiffer run gave the Falcons a lead they would never relinquish for the rest of the half. The Falcons built their lead to as high as six, but an Abbey run chopped the deficit to one at 44-43 with 35 ticks left, but a Gilliard layup with one second left moved the lead to three at 46-43 at the half.

Belmont Abbey opened the final 20 minutes on a 7-2 run to reclaim the lead at 52-50, but the Falcons scored six unanswered points to regain the lead they would never lose again. Their advantage grew to as high as 15 points, and the Abbey could not close to any fewer than ten points the rest of the way as Pfeiffer went on to win by 15, 104-89.

The Falcons return to their home court on Monday night for a showdown with first-place Mount Olive. Pfeiffer will tip with the Trojans at 7:30 p.m.